Notes & Quotes: Shock 61 - Mystics 64

NOTEWORTHY:

The Washington Mystics won their first game of the season in a thrilling 64-61 victory over the Tulsa Shock who have now dropped their third consecutive game

The Mystics were led by guard Matee Ajavon who led all scorers with 19 points off the bench, scoring 10 points in the second quarter alone. Ajavon shot 5-for-11 from the field and 8-for-10 from the free throw line. Ajavon also collected four steals and dished out three assists in 25 minutes of play

Mystics forward Crystal Langhorne played a game high 38 minutes, posting a double-double with 14 points and 10 rebounds. Langhorne shot 5-for-9 from the field and 4-for-6 from the charity stripe and collected four steals. Langhorne is now 13 rebounds away from 1,000 career rebounds

Mystics forward Monique Currie added 15 points, shooting 7-for-8 from the free throw line and pulled down five rebounds for the Mystics

The game featured 10 lead changes and 10 ties with the Mystics leading by as much as 16 points in the third quarter

The Shock outscored the Mystics 18-8 in the fourth quarter, bringing the score within one point at the 2:44 mark; however the Mystics never lost the lead

The Mystics outrebounded the Shock 40-27 and shot .457 from the field while the Shock had a field goal percentage of .305

The Shock were led by guard Ivory Latta who scored 16 points, shooting 5-for-12 from the field and 5-for-6 from the free throw line. Latta also dished out three assists

Thoughts on the game
It’s good to win, however I am not pleased with the types of turnover or the number of turnovers. We definitely have to make better decisions with the basketball. The turnovers were silly, I don’t know any other way to put it, and we have to continue to work on that. I felt like our defense was very good, especially our three-point field goal percentage defense. That is something we wanted to take away from them, because they have been shooting very well from there.”

On Matee Ajavon’s performance:
“It was very nice to have Matee back. She provides a lot of energy and she’s tough and that’s what I’ve asked of the team, she has stepped up and shown a lot of heart and a lot of toughness. It was a team effort, (Crystal)Langhorne came up good with lots of rebounds, Noelle didn’t score but she had nine rebounds. So again, it’s about being a team first, they do what it takes to win and I think they did that tonight.”

On the strong start of the second half:
“I think we came out very focused and determined, and again there is a different feel from playing from behind and then playing from a lead.”

WASHINGTON MYSTICS GUARD MATEE AJAVON

On the first win of the season:
“We didn’t particularly play well but we were able to come out with the win. We have a lot of things to work on and we will practice and come out better.”

On playing the first game of season and playing aggressive:
“I felt pretty good. My teammates were behind me the whole time and I just felt confident.”

Expectations for next game Minnesota
“We have to get ourselves together. Minnesota is a great team and we have to cut down on our turnovers. I think we had 28 turnovers as coach pointed out, so we just have to cut down on turnovers and respect the ball as she said.”

Washington Mystics Forward Monique Currie

Thoughts on the game
“It feels good to get our first win of the season. It was a battle but I’m glad that we found a way to win. We still have a lot to work on especially playing against the world champions next week.”

On fourth quarter:
“We knew Tulsa wouldn’t give up. They came back from being down 11 in the fourth quarter in their last game against Phoenix. They trap a lot and pressure the ball and we need to get to practice on breaking the presses and taking care of the ball because we didn’t do a great job of doing that tonight.”

Character to still come out with a win:
“Last year we lost so many games in the fourth quarter and so many by six points or less so being able to come out with a close win will give us some confidence.”